Experimental investigation of shock wave diffraction over a single- or double-sphere model

Abstract

In this study, the unsteady drag produced by the interaction of a shock wave with a single- and a double-sphere model is measured using imbedded accelerometers. The shock wave is generated in a horizontal circular shock tube with an inner diameter of 200 mm. The effect of the shock Mach number and the dimensionless distance between spheres is investigated. The time-history of the drag coefficient is obtained based on Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) band-block filtering and polynomial fitting of the measured acceleration. The measured peak values of the drag coefficient, with the associated uncertainty, are reported.